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Gregorius gets in grounders while elbow heals

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- D-backs shortstop prospect Didi Gregorius has begun taking ground balls the past few days, though he still is not allowed to swing a bat or make throws.

"I don't like to just sit and do nothing," he said. "I want to play."

Gregorius, who was acquired by the D-backs in December in a three-team trade that involved Trevor Bauer, suffered a slight strain of the ulnar collateral ligament area in his elbow around Christmastime. The team wanted to be extra cautious with him, so he was shut down from swinging a bat or throwing.

"I'll be throwing in a couple of weeks, and next week I'm going to start hitting and we'll take it from there," said Gregorius, ranked No. 3 among the D-backs' top prospects.

The injury scuttled the long shot hopes Gregorius had of making the team out of Spring Training.